DAIRY INDUSTRY: ALTERNATIVES TO RECOVERY WHEY AS A MEANS OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

Abstract

Small and medium industries of dairy products in Brazil are facing serious problems of competition for the consumer market due to factors such as small scale production, lack of standardization of products and processes, deficiencies in effective control of quality, difficult to define niche markets and different levels of technology, although they are generating jobs and income. In addition to these factors, it appears that the control of environmental impacts caused by these industries, given the current environmental legislation, has forced a change of attitude on the part of entrepreneurs, in order to control pollution, despite the shortcomings often perceived in infrastructure linked to industrialization, such as high energy and water. The treatment and disposal of effluents and solid waste disposal, which are critical in industrial processes, are often overlooked in small and medium industries, generating significant environmental impacts. Among the main environmental impacts generated by the dairy industry stands to generate significant amounts of wastewater with high organic load. In this sense, the main objective of this study was a literature survey concerning the main factors of environmental impact of small and medium industries in the dairy sector, aiming to propose alternative environmental management that favors the minimization of the factors generating these impacts.